I wonder if they'll regret trading DeMeco Ryans. I know he's a much better fit in a 4-3, but he's been ballin' in Philly.

I'm never too fond of players who have ever been implicated with PEDs, but still sucks to see this.

Yeah, I'm not fond of Cushing at all, predraft or now, but to see him tear his ACL on a pretty cheap play, iirc, hurts your heart a little bit. He was walking himself off the field into the locker room, too.

I know, I guess I don't understand ACL tears that well seeing as I completely dismissed that possibility seeing him walk like that, with only a slight limp. The guy is tough.

I wonder if they'll regret trading DeMeco Ryans. I know he's a much better fit in a 4-3, but he's been ballin' in Philly.

I'm never too fond of players who have ever been implicated with PEDs, but still sucks to see this.

Yeah, I'm not fond of Cushing at all, predraft or now, but to see him tear his ACL on a pretty cheap play, iirc, hurts your heart a little bit. He was walking himself off the field into the locker room, too.

I know, I guess I don't understand ACL tears that well seeing as I completely dismissed that possibility seeing him walk like that, with only a slight limp. The guy is tough.

Sucks for the Texans, huge loss.

It could be partially torn. But at the same time that may not be the case because last year when Terrell Thomas tore his ACL he didnt require a cart, he was able to walk off the field and into the locker room._________________

I wonder if they'll regret trading DeMeco Ryans. I know he's a much better fit in a 4-3, but he's been ballin' in Philly.

I'm never too fond of players who have ever been implicated with PEDs, but still sucks to see this.

Yeah, I'm not fond of Cushing at all, predraft or now, but to see him tear his ACL on a pretty cheap play, iirc, hurts your heart a little bit. He was walking himself off the field into the locker room, too.

I know, I guess I don't understand ACL tears that well seeing as I completely dismissed that possibility seeing him walk like that, with only a slight limp. The guy is tough.

Sucks for the Texans, huge loss.

It could be partially torn. But at the same time that may not be the case because last year when Terrell Thomas tore his ACL he didnt require a cart, he was able to walk off the field and into the locker room.

You'd probably have to break Cushing's femurs for him to be carted off. Guy is tough.

As for the statement about the Texans potentially regretting trading DeMeco: it was never a question of play; DeMeco is a great player and always will be. It is just his contract was so high for the amount of production we needed from that position (2 down LB -- If you watched MNF last night you saw how Glover Quin would move down to the "LB" in the nickel). If we still had DeMeco we wouldn't have been able to resign Duane Brown and Matt Schaub, and we certainly wouldn't have a shot at Barwin and Cushing this next year._________________All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost

I wonder if they'll regret trading DeMeco Ryans. I know he's a much better fit in a 4-3, but he's been ballin' in Philly.

I'm never too fond of players who have ever been implicated with PEDs, but still sucks to see this.

Yeah, I'm not fond of Cushing at all, predraft or now, but to see him tear his ACL on a pretty cheap play, iirc, hurts your heart a little bit. He was walking himself off the field into the locker room, too.

I know, I guess I don't understand ACL tears that well seeing as I completely dismissed that possibility seeing him walk like that, with only a slight limp. The guy is tough.

Sucks for the Texans, huge loss.

It could be partially torn. But at the same time that may not be the case because last year when Terrell Thomas tore his ACL he didnt require a cart, he was able to walk off the field and into the locker room.

You'd probably have to break Cushing's femurs for him to be carted off. Guy is tough.

As for the statement about the Texans potentially regretting trading DeMeco: it was never a question of play; DeMeco is a great player and always will be. It is just his contract was so high for the amount of production we needed from that position (2 down LB -- If you watched MNF last night you saw how Glover Quin would move down to the "LB" in the nickel). If we still had DeMeco we wouldn't have been able to resign Duane Brown and Matt Schaub, and we certainly wouldn't have a shot at Barwin and Cushing this next year.

Exactly. Most of it had to do with 'Meco and his "role" with the new look defense...and for a player who only played 44% of the defensive snaps in 2011, paying him upwards of $5MM a year just didn't make sense, and continuing to do so would mean that guys who are making snap-to-snap impacts would be lossed.

In regards to this injury - man, this is a big blow to this D. JJ Watt gets all of the press, but Cushing is just as much of an impact player for this defense, and replacing him is near to impossible. We can throw guys out there - rumors are we're already bringing in PS ILB Shawn Losineau, and we have reached out to MLB Barrett Ruud - but it's safe to say that neither guy would be able to cover the impact that Cush had for the Texans D.

One idea I'm going to be floating around? Moving OLB Connor Barwin inside to Cushing's role and placing 2012 1st round pick Whitney Mercilius to the starting lineup. I know the reponsibilities Barwin has now at OLB are completely different when moved to ILB...but at the least, this move would put the Texans in a place to where the best starting 11 are on the field for this D, and hopefully that could mitigate this loss.

Nonetheless, VERY tough loss for the Texans. No matter what happens now, this is a big blow._________________

I wonder if they'll regret trading DeMeco Ryans. I know he's a much better fit in a 4-3, but he's been ballin' in Philly.

I'm never too fond of players who have ever been implicated with PEDs, but still sucks to see this.

Yeah, I'm not fond of Cushing at all, predraft or now, but to see him tear his ACL on a pretty cheap play, iirc, hurts your heart a little bit. He was walking himself off the field into the locker room, too.

I know, I guess I don't understand ACL tears that well seeing as I completely dismissed that possibility seeing him walk like that, with only a slight limp. The guy is tough.

Sucks for the Texans, huge loss.

It could be partially torn. But at the same time that may not be the case because last year when Terrell Thomas tore his ACL he didnt require a cart, he was able to walk off the field and into the locker room.

You'd probably have to break Cushing's femurs for him to be carted off. Guy is tough.

As for the statement about the Texans potentially regretting trading DeMeco: it was never a question of play; DeMeco is a great player and always will be. It is just his contract was so high for the amount of production we needed from that position (2 down LB -- If you watched MNF last night you saw how Glover Quin would move down to the "LB" in the nickel). If we still had DeMeco we wouldn't have been able to resign Duane Brown and Matt Schaub, and we certainly wouldn't have a shot at Barwin and Cushing this next year.

Exactly. Most of it had to do with 'Meco and his "role" with the new look defense...and for a player who only played 44% of the defensive snaps in 2011, paying him upwards of $5MM a year just didn't make sense, and continuing to do so would mean that guys who are making snap-to-snap impacts would be lossed.

In regards to this injury - man, this is a big blow to this D. JJ Watt gets all of the press, but Cushing is just as much of an impact player for this defense, and replacing him is near to impossible. We can throw guys out there - rumors are we're already bringing in PS ILB Shawn Losineau, and we have reached out to MLB Barrett Ruud - but it's safe to say that neither guy would be able to cover the impact that Cush had for the Texans D.

One idea I'm going to be floating around? Moving OLB Connor Barwin inside to Cushing's role and placing 2012 1st round pick Whitney Mercilius to the starting lineup. I know the reponsibilities Barwin has now at OLB are completely different when moved to ILB...but at the least, this move would put the Texans in a place to where the best starting 11 are on the field for this D, and hopefully that could mitigate this loss.

Nonetheless, VERY tough loss for the Texans. No matter what happens now, this is a big blow.

I would think Brooks Reed would be the primary candidate to move inside. He's built more like an ILB. Barwin's length would be a fairly substantial disadvantage an the ILB posiiton._________________

I wonder if they'll regret trading DeMeco Ryans. I know he's a much better fit in a 4-3, but he's been ballin' in Philly.

I'm never too fond of players who have ever been implicated with PEDs, but still sucks to see this.

Yeah, I'm not fond of Cushing at all, predraft or now, but to see him tear his ACL on a pretty cheap play, iirc, hurts your heart a little bit. He was walking himself off the field into the locker room, too.

I know, I guess I don't understand ACL tears that well seeing as I completely dismissed that possibility seeing him walk like that, with only a slight limp. The guy is tough.

Sucks for the Texans, huge loss.

It could be partially torn. But at the same time that may not be the case because last year when Terrell Thomas tore his ACL he didnt require a cart, he was able to walk off the field and into the locker room.

You'd probably have to break Cushing's femurs for him to be carted off. Guy is tough.

As for the statement about the Texans potentially regretting trading DeMeco: it was never a question of play; DeMeco is a great player and always will be. It is just his contract was so high for the amount of production we needed from that position (2 down LB -- If you watched MNF last night you saw how Glover Quin would move down to the "LB" in the nickel). If we still had DeMeco we wouldn't have been able to resign Duane Brown and Matt Schaub, and we certainly wouldn't have a shot at Barwin and Cushing this next year.

Exactly. Most of it had to do with 'Meco and his "role" with the new look defense...and for a player who only played 44% of the defensive snaps in 2011, paying him upwards of $5MM a year just didn't make sense, and continuing to do so would mean that guys who are making snap-to-snap impacts would be lossed.

In regards to this injury - man, this is a big blow to this D. JJ Watt gets all of the press, but Cushing is just as much of an impact player for this defense, and replacing him is near to impossible. We can throw guys out there - rumors are we're already bringing in PS ILB Shawn Losineau, and we have reached out to MLB Barrett Ruud - but it's safe to say that neither guy would be able to cover the impact that Cush had for the Texans D.

One idea I'm going to be floating around? Moving OLB Connor Barwin inside to Cushing's role and placing 2012 1st round pick Whitney Mercilius to the starting lineup. I know the reponsibilities Barwin has now at OLB are completely different when moved to ILB...but at the least, this move would put the Texans in a place to where the best starting 11 are on the field for this D, and hopefully that could mitigate this loss.

Nonetheless, VERY tough loss for the Texans. No matter what happens now, this is a big blow.

I would think Brooks Reed would be the primary candidate to move inside. He's built more like an ILB. Barwin's length would be a fairly substantial disadvantage an the ILB posiiton.

It's all interesting thought, but pretty much conjecture at this point. We'll probably just stick with Dobbins and Alexander for the rest of the year._________________All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost

I wonder if they'll regret trading DeMeco Ryans. I know he's a much better fit in a 4-3, but he's been ballin' in Philly.

I'm never too fond of players who have ever been implicated with PEDs, but still sucks to see this.

Yeah, I'm not fond of Cushing at all, predraft or now, but to see him tear his ACL on a pretty cheap play, iirc, hurts your heart a little bit. He was walking himself off the field into the locker room, too.

I know, I guess I don't understand ACL tears that well seeing as I completely dismissed that possibility seeing him walk like that, with only a slight limp. The guy is tough.

Sucks for the Texans, huge loss.

It could be partially torn. But at the same time that may not be the case because last year when Terrell Thomas tore his ACL he didnt require a cart, he was able to walk off the field and into the locker room.

You'd probably have to break Cushing's femurs for him to be carted off. Guy is tough.

As for the statement about the Texans potentially regretting trading DeMeco: it was never a question of play; DeMeco is a great player and always will be. It is just his contract was so high for the amount of production we needed from that position (2 down LB -- If you watched MNF last night you saw how Glover Quin would move down to the "LB" in the nickel). If we still had DeMeco we wouldn't have been able to resign Duane Brown and Matt Schaub, and we certainly wouldn't have a shot at Barwin and Cushing this next year.

Exactly. Most of it had to do with 'Meco and his "role" with the new look defense...and for a player who only played 44% of the defensive snaps in 2011, paying him upwards of $5MM a year just didn't make sense, and continuing to do so would mean that guys who are making snap-to-snap impacts would be lossed.

In regards to this injury - man, this is a big blow to this D. JJ Watt gets all of the press, but Cushing is just as much of an impact player for this defense, and replacing him is near to impossible. We can throw guys out there - rumors are we're already bringing in PS ILB Shawn Losineau, and we have reached out to MLB Barrett Ruud - but it's safe to say that neither guy would be able to cover the impact that Cush had for the Texans D.

One idea I'm going to be floating around? Moving OLB Connor Barwin inside to Cushing's role and placing 2012 1st round pick Whitney Mercilius to the starting lineup. I know the reponsibilities Barwin has now at OLB are completely different when moved to ILB...but at the least, this move would put the Texans in a place to where the best starting 11 are on the field for this D, and hopefully that could mitigate this loss.

Nonetheless, VERY tough loss for the Texans. No matter what happens now, this is a big blow.

I would think Brooks Reed would be the primary candidate to move inside. He's built more like an ILB. Barwin's length would be a fairly substantial disadvantage an the ILB posiiton.

It's all interesting thought, but pretty much conjecture at this point. We'll probably just stick with Dobbins and Alexander for the rest of the year.

After looking at some of the LBs on the market, I wouldn't be too upset if we brought Xavier Adibi back; He played the ILB spot in the preseason for us two years ago, and he actually looked like a better fit for the role vs the WLB we had him in when we ran a 4-3. I was a bit surprised that Adibi was let go two seasons ago, so maybe he's someone we kick the tires on.

Nonetheless, a rotation of Dobbins and Alexander is something I am not looking forward to.

Side question: Who get's the headset in the defense now? JJ Watt is the easy answer, but do you want a DE to be making the defensive calls?_________________

Bummer for Cush. Wish him nothing but the best in his recovery process._________________2013 Eagles Forum HOF
[quote="Leon Sandcastle"]Chip Kelly's system is college material...that stuff doesn't fly in the NFL[/quote]

In regards to this injury - man, this is a big blow to this D. JJ Watt gets all of the press, but Cushing is just as much of an impact player for this defense

Eh?

I know JJ Watt is right now wowing the universe, but in watching the Texans from top to bottom, you'll see that Cushing is the "OTHER" guy. Not quite the Robin to his Batman...more of the Donatello to his Leonardo, with Brooks Reed and the scary, gruff hair as Raphael and the quirky Connor Barwin as Michaelangelo. Antonio Smith is Splinter.

(That's right. Ninja Turtle reference).

Watt makes the flashy plays, the swatted down passes, the sacks, etc...but it was Cushing who would be stalking the outside run and meeting the RB at the POA, falling into coverage and taking away the short passes inside the hash...we like to call these guys "garbage men" when talking football analogies, guys who do the dirty work, the stops that don't make the Top 10 highlights. They don't get the press, but their impact is felt, a very important aspect of the game.

Side question: Who get's the headset in the defense now? JJ Watt is the easy answer, but do you want a DE to be making the defensive calls?

That's unlikely given that we rotate our d-line quite a bit. Headset needs to go to a player that's expected to be on the field at all times so likely James (sigh) or whichever of the safeties stays on for run (heavy) formations._________________

2. I guess I just see the Pass Rusher/Run distruption aspect of a 3-4 DE to be a much much more in portent position than ILB. They may be of similar skill but positionally Watt just has so much more of an impact on a game and disrupting an Offenses flow than any ILB could ever dream of._________________Ted brought us Clay